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BeerBrewer's avatar
BeerBrewer
Explorer
Apr 20, 2019

More beginner RVing questions

The wife and I just purchased our first Travel Trailer (Grand Design Transcend 26RLS) and we've got a couple trips already planned already. We thought it best that we stay close to home and that we don't stay out too many days. We even considered camping in the back yard, but the town we live has a lot of strange rules and we didn't want to tempt fate. Our first trip is to Smiths Point (Long Island) and two weeks later we head to Gettysburg for a couple more.

Since it's only the two of us and we are only staying two nights at Smith Point, I'm thinking that I should not bother to connect the sewer line because the tanks won't be full enough to properly dump. I figured that we'd have to dump the tanks when we leave Gettysburg a couple weeks later. Am I on the right track? Is it okay to leave the TT with waste in the tanks for the two weeks? It shouldn't stink out the trailer, should it? Do I need to do anything special to treat the tanks?

Funny but when we first entertained the idea of buying a TT and touring the country I thought that I'd be more worried about the idea of driving and backing up a travel trailer and now that the day nears, I seem more worried about sanitary aspect of it.
  • myredracer's avatar
    myredracer
    Explorer II
    May 01, 2019
    BeerBrewer wrote:
    Anyone use Kirkland (Costco) toilet paper?
    All we've been using for going on 10 years. Many use it. It disintegrates the same as RV TP. Did a test in a jar once to see. Note that at least one major brand of "RV toilet paper" does NOT break down and you're paying a mafia price and getting no benefit. Some other household brands work fine. If concerned, do a test in a jar. Some even use non-disintegrating TP without issue. It shouldn't really have a problem flowing through the typical 3" outlet pipe on an RV, but perhaps could get trapped easier in a blade seal?
  • myredracer's avatar
    myredracer
    Explorer II
    May 01, 2019
    BeerBrewer wrote:
    Yes the trailer does have a black tank flush. Would it be better to use it and dump the tanks rather than leave them partially full?
    I'm of the opinion you're just better off dumping/flushing the tank before leaving a CG. If there aren't sewer hookups, they should have a dump station and it's easy to pull into one and dump and then not have to think about the tank until your next outing.

    If you leave "contents" in the tank, the sprayer won't be very effective. The sprayer nozzle is relatively low down, has a small spray pattern and at the best of times, doesn't have a very forceful spray. Sometimes you can see the sprayer below the toilet if you look down with a flashlight.

    FWIW, when breaking camp, first thing I do is fill the black tank to near full, let 'er rip, leave the valve open and let the in-tank rinser run 15 minutes or so. The bottom of the tank usually ends up factory clean, factory fresh... :) If we happen to be at a CG without sewer hookups, if there's a lineup or can't hook up the sprayer, I just dump and go and just wait until the next outing to rinse the tank. Dump stations often have the hose end cut off and you can't add any water to your tank unless you use a "water bandit". In that case, you might be better off leaving some contents in the tank so it'll remain soft-ish.
  • 2oldman's avatar
    2oldman
    Explorer II
    May 02, 2019
    drsteve wrote:
    They think it's vital to use the black flush every time, pour in lots of chemicals, buy RV paper, the works.
    As long as they think hookups are vital, I'm all for it! :)

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